我在金门的日子, Kinmen Island (11th January 2014)

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Saturday, 11th January 2014

Given the lengthy commute between Singapore and Kinmen Island, it was almost dark by the time we reached our homestay at La Place (Urban @ Farmhouse). We started the journey 8 hours earlier for our Malaysia Airlines flight to the city of Xiamen including a 2 hours stopover at Kuala Lumpur International Airport. It was closed to 2pm when our flight landed at Xiamen Gaoqi International Airport.

Without further ado, we hopped on to the next available cab from the official taxi ranks at the airport to bring us straight to Wutong Terminal. Our final leg consisted of a 30-minute ferry ride to Shuito Harbour in Kinmen and a somewhat hefty NT250 taxi ride to our homestay in Kincheng City.

Our commute was half the fun given that we were physically present at 4 different countries today through a variety of transportation options.

Ann, the owner of La Place welcomed us with a wide smile when we arrived. Given the small setup of the homestay, there was a more personal touch in a less commercial setting. Our room was comfortable and we were happy to make La Place home for our next 4 nights.

Even though we were both tired from our long commute, we somehow found the energy to join in the night tour of Kincheng City. Starting and ending at the Division Commander's Office, the 2 hours tour covered mainly the old streets of Houpu and Mofan plus a few other historical sights and smells of the city. For sure, it provided a good overview of the general flavour of the place as we set to explore the island proper the next morning.

A few hours after we landed, we were starting to like our choice of travel destination. Slowly but surely, Kinmen grows on us. Even though we were miles away from mainland Taiwan, that same friendly and welcoming folks never failed to touch our hearts whenever and wherever we go on the island.

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